As the subject of this month's cover, Bill Boyle's '56 Chevy 210 hardtop is one of the most detailed shoeboxes we've seen in a while. Built partly with an eye on the '56 Chevy's 40th Anniversary, the car was completed in January 1996 by previous owner Jerry Crowe. In fact, Bill bought the car from Jerry just in time for this cover feature. While Jerry recently sold the car to Bill, his love for old Chevys is apparent by the attention to detail everywhere you look on the car.

Getting started with a powdercoated frame, Jerry completed 80 percent of the body-off restification himself, except for the paint and interior upholstery work. Painted underneath and on top entirely in Laser Red, the body retains all of its trim and chrome work that makes the '56 one of the most beautiful '50s-era cars ever built. With all accessories chromed or polished, hidden updates include a 14-gallon Rock Valley fuel tank and small wheeltubs to accommodate a pair of 12.5-inch-wide Mickey Thompson rear tires and Center Line wheels.

Suspension updates are functional and include a PST 1-inch antisway bar up front and Posie's leaf springs in back that make the car sit 3 inches lower in the rear. PST Polygraphite bushings are also in place up front to help keep the big 210 on the road. Monroe Sensatrac gas shocks reside at each corner, while Master Power front disc brakes work with rear Ford discs to provide stopping power. Between the rear discs is a Ford 9-inch rearend from a Lincoln Versailles with 3.70:1 gears.

The interior is equally as exceptional as the rest of the car. Jerry used gray tweed and dove-gray leather to cover the front and rear bench seats. VDO gauges mounted in the factory dash keep tabs on water temperature and oil pressure. During hot summers, driver and passengers are kept cool with a Vintage Air A/C system.

Jerry knew just any old powerplant wouldn't work for a rig of this caliber. His wise decision to go with a 502-inch big-block Chevy crate engine is something we don't have any problem with. Available straight out of the GM Performance Parts catalog under PN 10185085, it's rated at 440 hp at 5,200 rpm and 515 lb-ft of torque at 3,500 rpm. Another smart move on Jerry's part was to go modern-tech in the drivetrain with a 700-R4 four-speed automatic--something we're sure Bill appreciates when he takes the car on a road trip.

The attention to detail that Jerry put into this car is not only appreciated by the car's new owner, Bill, but was also noticed at a recent show where the car appeared. The show specializes in '55-'57 Chevys, and its judges had somehow overlooked '56 models. In eight years, not one was awarded Best of Show. Bill's was the first '56 to win the title, which is proof that in some ways the '56 is the coolest year of all three classic shoebox production years. At least Bill Boyle and Jerry Crowe think so.CC